Columbus and the Fat Lady

MATT COHEN (1942–99) was an acclaimed author of adult and children’s literature. His final novel, Elizabeth and After, won the Governor General’s Literary Award for Fiction. His other novels include The Disinherited and Emotional Arithmetic, which was adapted into a feature film. He is honoured by the Writers’ Trust of Canada, of which he was a founding member, with the Matt Cohen Award, given out annually for lifetime achievement in Canadian literature. He also wrote several books for children under the pseudonym Teddy Jam.

WAYNE GRADY is an award-winning author, translator, and editor. He has won the John Glassco Translation Prize and the Governor General’s Literary Award for Translation and was a finalist for the Governor General’s Literary Award two additional times. His debut novel, Emancipation Day, won the Amazon.ca First Novel Award. He lives near Kingston, Ontario, with his wife, novelist Merilyn Simonds.